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Hey guys,

So I'm sure this has been asked before but I can't find it answered anywhere here or in Lexicanum: With their bulky power armor, field deployments and battles that last long periods of time, and body modifications, how often does an Astartes have to use the bathroom?

I've looked through the surgical conditioning they all go through, but I don't see anything about the new organs affecting their digestive systems or bowel movements. Being enhanced humans and battle-hardened soldiers, I'd imagine it's not something they concern themselves with, but it's still an everyday function for organic life...

Their backpack recycles it all.

I imagine a Space Marine can hold their bladder/bowels for quite some time, probably days on end easily. Going to the bathroom likely isn't an issue.

Where do you think they get their bolter ammo from...yup thats right they crap bullets.

Harriticus wrote:I imagine a Space Marine can hold their bladder/bowels for quite some time, probably days on end easily. Going to the bathroom likely isn't an issue.

This is what I've assumed as well, similar to how a modern sniper will hold it in for days at a time, but I'm curious as to there being an official/canon explanation or even a passing reference to it in one of the novels (I'm still reading my first one, so I'm very new to 40k lore).

I think it's one of those things that GW doesn't really expect people to wonder about. I guess their suits can recycle stuff, up to a point.

I'm now curious about the commodes available on their fortress monasteries and spacecraft.

They must be huge, considering the space marines are pretty much giants. I wonder if they're tended to with the same care as the rest of 40k's technology. Are the sanctified with purity seals and litanies? If they are, wouldn't it be heretical to defecate in one? Or are they just gigantic versions of modern toilets? What happens if one breaks down, do you have a special plumbing division of the AM?

No it was explained, the suits do a lot of stuff.



Seems to be in their right side, not the back pack like I thought I remembered. Unsurprisingly right next to the food and drug filler as apparently that's what it is reprocessed into somehow.

Lokas wrote:I'm now curious about the commodes available on their fortress monasteries and spacecraft.

They must be huge, considering the space marines are pretty much giants. I wonder if they're tended to with the same care as the rest of 40k's technology. Are the sanctified with purity seals and litanies? If they are, wouldn't it be heretical to defecate in one? Or are they just gigantic versions of modern toilets? What happens if one breaks down, do you have a special plumbing division of the AM?

Can't find they prayer at the moment, but they have a prayer of maintenance that would likely be chanted while they use the plumber servitor which undoubtably exists somewhere.

Yup, the backpack recycles it if I remember correctly. It processes all waste material and recyles it for the wearer. Yummmmm.


I seem to remember this being explained a little in the Fulgrim book on the HH. I believe it was mentioned by one of the loyalist marines enduring Istvan III. I believe he described the wafer as "tasteless" (thankfully).


At least that's what my faulty memory is coming up with.

Though I could be wrong.

Thanks for the info, guys, that definitely answers my question. I'm pretty sure I couldn't have gone my whole life without needing to know the "reprocessing" bit, but hey, I did ask

n0t_u wrote:No it was explained, the suits do a lot of stuff.



Seems to be in their right side, not the back pack like I thought I remembered. Unsurprisingly right next to the food and drug filler as apparently that's what it is reprocessed into somehow.

Lokas wrote:I'm now curious about the commodes available on their fortress monasteries and spacecraft.

They must be huge, considering the space marines are pretty much giants. I wonder if they're tended to with the same care as the rest of 40k's technology. Are the sanctified with purity seals and litanies? If they are, wouldn't it be heretical to defecate in one? Or are they just gigantic versions of modern toilets? What happens if one breaks down, do you have a special plumbing division of the AM?

Can't find they prayer at the moment, but they have a prayer of maintenance that would likely be chanted while they use the plumber servitor which undoubtably exists somewhere.

If they held it in for a whole campain I have no doubt that they would need a plumber servitor to de-pack them.

Servo skulls are actually anti-grav porta-potties...

Actually, quite a bit of the food in the Imperium is recycled waste. Many planets rely on this source of food between shipments of the real deal

'And they shall use no badroom'

I imagine waste would be recycled like a "Fremen" suit.

The Imperium is heavily based on the Dune universe.

so this means that the IoM eats....waste all the time.....

sucks to be human in that universe, im shure that even orks eat real food.

hand banana wrote:so this means that the IoM eats....waste all the time.....

sucks to be human in that universe, im shure that even orks eat real food.

Yeah orks afaik are the only race how have desent food

The Deathless Host wrote:

hand banana wrote:so this means that the IoM eats....waste all the time.....

sucks to be human in that universe, im shure that even orks eat real food.

Yeah orks afaik are the only race how have desent food

If the original edition's account is still correct, squigs eat the Ork's crap, and are then themselves eaten by the Orks. So even the Orks are gak-eaters, in a roundabout way.

Ixion wrote:

The Deathless Host wrote:

hand banana wrote:so this means that the IoM eats....waste all the time.....

sucks to be human in that universe, im shure that even orks eat real food.

Yeah orks afaik are the only race how have desent food

If the original edition's account is still correct, squigs eat the Ork's crap, and are then themselves eaten by the Orks. So even the Orks are gak-eaters, in a roundabout way.

(that was my reaction in order)

If it is all recycled in the Backpack, if I were a space marine I want EXTRA armor on my backpack... would not want it to get shoot, leakage...

It's all very well saying the suit processes all the waste, but how? Just how you you take a dump in power armour? Peeing is easily solved with a relief tube, but what happens when you have a quiet moment of contemplation...?

n0t_u wrote:No it was explained, the suits do a lot of stuff.



Seems to be in their right side, not the back pack like I thought I remembered. Unsurprisingly right next to the food and drug filler as apparently that's what it is reprocessed into somehow.

Does anybody have a larger version of this, by any chance?

farmersboy wrote:It's all very well saying the suit processes all the waste, but how? Just how you you take a dump in power armour? Peeing is easily solved with a relief tube, but what happens when you have a quiet moment of contemplation...?

Tubes. Lots of tubes.

That is all.

Ixion wrote:

The Deathless Host wrote:

hand banana wrote:so this means that the IoM eats....waste all the time.....

sucks to be human in that universe, im shure that even orks eat real food.

Yeah orks afaik are the only race how have desent food

If the original edition's account is still correct, squigs eat the Ork's crap, and are then themselves eaten by the Orks. So even the Orks are gak-eaters, in a roundabout way.

So basically like modern Earth.

Animals crap on the ground (or animal crap is spread on the ground), plants eat the crap, we eat the plants, or we give the plants for animals for more crapping (then we eat the animals).